Is there anybody here who remembers, and can help me find, this particular version of “Johnny One Note”?
From way back in my youth, I remember a song called “Johnny One Note”. The song involved somebody singing about how Johnny could only sing one note, and after each verse, “Johnny” would sing the chorus … entirely on one note.
Decades later, I remember this, and hit YouTube to find that song, and all I can find is this:
(Judy Garland singing, so it's clean)
This is not the song I remember.
Am I remembering a choir song that was inspired by the original, or something?
I am a fan of heavy metal. My metal roots are in Judas Priest, Iron Maiden, Manowar, etc. All bands that feature phenomenal lead vocalists.
At some point, this thing called “death metal” came along, featuring what came to be called “Cookie Monster” vocals. Today, a decade or more later, this style of vocals is just called “harsh” or “dirty” vocals. Whatever it’s called, it’s fairly common, and I no longer have the adverse reaction to them that I initially had. It’s a vocal style that has its place, and can be extremely effective when used well.
But, after listening to bands I enjoy who use these “harsh” vocals, I suddenly noticed something about them. These guys (and women) who use this style seem to have exactly one pitch that they can use to produce that sound. This “growl” is not “singing”, in the sense that they cannot produce an actual melody with this vocal style.
So I thought it would be hilarious if I could make a video of the song, and replace the little boy singing on one note with death metal vocalists.
If you’re referring to “Sing,” ( the song that seems to come close), I doubt that’s it. The “singer” doesn’t sing a note (other than a few very flat ones) and just talks the lyrics (the chorus sings to finish her sentences). The point of the song is that she can’t sing at all, so she doesn’t.
No, I clearly remember the intonation “thisisasongaboutjohnnyonenotewhocouldonlysingonenoteandthisisthenotehesang laaaaaa”. So apparently my putting that in Chorus Line is just my memory playing tricks on me. Unfortunately, that doesn’t help in figuring out where it was I did hear it.
That’s pretty close to the introduction that Judy Garland sings in the above video: “Johnny could only sing one note and the note he sang was this:” For the record, I’ve heard versions that compress the words together more than she does. Notice that this intro is sung on just one note. Could that be what the OP is remembering about the song?
This (the song Judy is singing) is the only song that I have ever heard of with the title “Johnny One Note.” It’s an old standard, written by Rodgers and Hart, and has probably been recorded by hundreds of people over the years. It’s possible that someone might have done a version that’s closer to what Mister Rik remembers, but if so I’m not familiar with it.
I seem to recall (vaguely) that I heard the song as a live performance by a choir of some sort. I suppose it’s possible that it was a unique arrangement riffing on the “one note” idea.